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1993 Custom Toyota Mini Truck - Project Dragged Daily: Part XXXIV.5

Finally, the Front Suspension!

Photography by Mike Alexander

Mini Truckin', July 01, 2006

Well, it may have taken a few months, but like the old adage states: Good things come to those who wait! So after a couple months of penciling ideas and trying to figure out how the heck we were going to fit a coilover and a bag up front and still be able to lock it out (not to mention contending with the steering, header, etc.).... Let's just say the front was quite a bit more challenging than the rear. But have no fear. We placed our complete faith in Aaron, knowing that if anyone could do it, he would definitely be the one! We tossed around the idea of a pair of hydraulic cylinders mounted in the rear with fluid pushed by airbags to a pair of cylinders in the front that would give us the space we needed to still fit the coilover. While it was a great idea (and I'm sure we'll see it on something soon), we wanted to stick with the airbag to match the rear setup. Eventually a light just clicked in Aaron's crazy head and we saw his eyes light up and instantly knew that he'd figured it out. With so much to fit in such a little space Aaron really had his work cut out for him, but what he managed to do was build another pair of arms that would bolt inside the control arms. The lower arm acts as the bag plate and also attaches to the upper arm. The upper arm attaches to the coilover and the connecting rod, so when the bag inflates it pulls down on the upper arm and the connecting rod lifts the truck, since the coilover is attached to the lower control arm and that upper secondary arm. It might sound a little confusing, but just like the rear, it's pretty simple once you see it in action. Follow along to see Aaron work his magic...yet again. For more information, contact the companies listed in the source box.

1. With his brain moving 1,000,000 miles an hour to try and figure out how to fit the RCD coilovers, a bag, and a connecting system all in the confines of the front suspension, Aaron began with the basics by measuring the amount of travel he anticipated.

1. With his brain moving 1,000,000 miles an hour to try and figure out how to fit the RCD

2. Once we knew how much lift we needed to get, the fun began. Aaron visualized a system in his head that he figured might work, but space was definitely a nagging factor. With a tape measure in hand, he measured out all the possibilities. He started by placing the RCD coilover as far back as he could.

2. Once we knew how much lift we needed to get, the fun began. Aaron visualized a system i

3. The next necessary measurement is the width clearance of the coil. This will tell us exactly how much room we have left (which isn't much).

3. The next necessary measurement is the width clearance of the coil. This will tell us ex

4. After the grueling task of measuring 1,000 times, Aaron built the parts in his 3-D program to test everything and see what, if any, adjustments were needed before cutting the parts.

4. After the grueling task of measuring 1,000 times, Aaron built the parts in his 3-D prog

5. With all the parts designed and tested, the next step was to put God's greatest gift to work. The CNC plasma cutter has seriously made this project top-notch!

5. With all the parts designed and tested, the next step was to put God's greatest gift to

6. All of the parts were deburred of the resulting slag, and the edges were cleaned up.

7. Next, all of the holes were milled out and cleaned up.

8. Once all of the parts were cleaned up, Aaron assembled them and got his weld on.

9. Here's a quick look at the lower bag mount. Not bad, not bad at all!